Reaper (Blade)
, the original Reaper.]] Reapers are a fictional species in the Blade Trilogy of films. Biography Reapers were a deadlier breed of vampires. Eli Damaskinos, an ancient vampire elder, created this breed in a quest to eliminate the weaknesses of the vampire race via genetic sequencing of his own pureblood DNA. Carriers of the reaper strain were known as "Reapers". While the "Reaper strain" did improve some vampire strengths and even removed some of their traditional weaknesses, it was deemed a failure - because it drove its carriers' blood-thirst well beyond that of normal vampires, making them almost feral monsters. Their heightened metabolism prompted them to feed every couple of hours or else they'll start feeding on themselves. The comparison was made that if normal vampires are like heroin addicts who need to shoot up every week or so, Reapers are like "crack-heads", constantly consumed minute by minute with the unthinking drive to get their next fix. With the exception of the first reaper, Jared Nomak, Reapers were incapable of human speech, communicating through snarls and growls, though they retained enough intelligence to follow Nomak's orders, attack in an organized way, feign private and civilized behavior in public when not attacking, and set traps for their enemies and prey. Strengths & Weaknesses * A thick case of bone, covering their heart in the front and back, making it near-impossible to be staked directly. * A 'three-way' jaw, in which the two sides of the lower jaw split apart at the chin. The left and right sides of the lower jaw have fangs that inject a neurotoxin to paralyze their victims while feeding. This jaw is easily concealed, allowing the Reaper to surprise the victim. Their mouth also contains a toothed, inner proboscis: this does the actual bloodsucking when the Reaper's three-way jaw splits apart, and is what transmits the Reaper strain into the victim. In addition, a Reaper's mouth has overdeveloped masseter muscles which allow for a much stronger bite. * The ability to transfer the Reaper strain to victims through a bite. The virus is carried by barbs through the Reaper's tongue. * A highly evolved thirst, which allows them to feed on both humans and normal vampires alike. * Even greater strength and durability than normal vampires. Standard vampires will at least be stunned if shot by standard, non-silver bullets, but reapers practically shrug off automatic weapons fire. * Total resistance to silver and garlic. * Improved resistance to EDTA. While normal vampires literally explode into a cloud of blood after several seconds if injected with EDTA, Nomak was only briefly stunned and in moderate pain, before shrugging it off with no long-term damage. The only reaper weaknesses are to sunlight/ultraviolet light (which causes them to combust almost instantly), and the constant pain caused by the virus which is only satiated by feeding daily. Impaling a Reaper through the heart is possible, but difficult due to the extra layer of hardened bone. Because the heart is protected in the front and back by bone plate armor, it is necessary to impale a Reaper from the side, which is very difficult. Additionally, with the exception of nomak, all other reapers are so dependent on fresh blood that their bodies will start to consume themselves if they are unable to feed for a couple of hours; their bodies will still try and "feed" even after their brains die. Category:Marvel Comics vampires Category:Marvel Comics mutants Category:Marvel Comics species Category:Human-derived fictional species Category:Fictional endangered and extinct species Category:Fictional genetically engineered characters Category:Fictional vampire types Category:Fictional mutants Category:Fictional viruses Category:Fictional cannibals